Once in power, Generalissimo Buckmaster instituted a series of controversial reforms that he deemed "necessary to correct the ship", referring to his repeated analogy of the state as a ship careening off course. The binary nature of the political landscape at the time meant that regardless of the policy being implemented, half the country was upset before they had read a word of the policies being presented, making rebellion practically inevitable. The new regime calculated successfully, at least initially, that the leftist socialists that made up the bulk of the dissenters, and who were adamantly against civilian possession of firearms at the time, wouldn't have the means to fight, as they were generally young, untrained pacifists. "They can cry all they want, what the **** are they going to do about it?" -Generalissimo Buckmaster referencing the routine opposition rallies held outside the Capitol during his first reforms. On April 9th, 2017, Dictatorial Decree DD-016 was issued, which ended universal suffrage and replaced it with an "earned credit system" that required citizens to earn their right to vote, each election cycle, through acts of service to the state, effectively stripping millions of citizens of their voting rights.

Born into a prominent family, college-educated Khasim Ludinev was, by all accounts, a quiet, studious academic who, before the coup, was studying for his masters in political science. Those close to him noted that he had an interest in the history of political activism and socialism, believing corporate-capitalism was primarily to blame for the current issues in the country, and lecturing ad nauseum to anyone who would listen. The disparity of his calm-but-persistent conversational demeanor, and his interest in violent revolution seems ironic today after the events of May 13, 2018. Ludinev seems to have been radicalized some time after the passing of DD-016 and later evidence found in his home show that this was a major factor in his actions one year later. After the decree was passed, Ludinev began holding regular meetings with other students and faculty in protest to the regime's policies. These rallies grew with time but were largely ignored by the regime as the attendees weren't thought to be armed. At the time, the regime's focus was on consolidating power in the military and local jurisdictions and little attention was given to civilian dissent. By the time the regime became concerned about the size of Ludinev's following and began making arrests, it was too late; Ludinev had vanished.

On May 13th, 2018, a massive protest was organized on the west end of the capital, near the commerce district. The protest drew over a hundred thousand people into the streets. Eventually the protests became more hostile and began moving towards the Capitol building,  surrounding it over time. The regime ordered the newly-formed Blue Brigade to surround the Capitol and shoot anyone trying to push past them. As the protestors' intensity increased, Brigade security forces began ramping up the removal of armed instigators from the crowd. Security forces worrying that the protest would soon grow beyond their ability to control it, advised the Generalissimo to evacuate the Capitol building. Eventually the dictator agreed. At 1932 hours, an armored, undercover motorcade, disguised as civilian vehicles, exited the east loading dock in the rear of the Capitol building and began moving towards the edge of the Capitol's security perimeter, where protestors seemed to be minimal. As the motorcade exited the perimeter and made its first turn onto Capitol Blvd. an RPG was fired from high in an adjacent parking structure, striking the roof of the first vehicle and setting off a coordinated ambush by, none other than, Ludinev himself, along with a small contingent of two dozen followers. The motorcade was destroyed along with 23/25 security forces killed, but Generalissimo Buckmaster wasn't among them. The Generalissimo had anticipated the move, based on the notable lack of protesters near the east gate seeming suspicious, and chose to remain inside the Capitol bunker, sending the motorcade out as bait. Ludinev was reported to have been shot during the fighting but managed to escape. 8 of his men were also killed. Generalissimo Buckmaster, upon reports of the attack, used the event as justification and ordered his Brigade to clear the area surrounding the Capitol by firing into the crowd. By 2200 hours, the Capitol was silent and more than 500 protestors lay dead, 490 of which were unarmed, and countless hundreds wounded.